6 Injured During Horse Stampede In Griffith Park

BURBANK (CBSLA.com) — Six people were injured Saturday after the horses they were riding allegedly got startled by a horse running loose in Griffith Park.

Burbank Police reported they were attending to people who had been injured around 11:50 a.m. at 480 West Riverside Drive.

At 1150 a horse running loose on a trail in Equestrian Ctr property injured 4 adults &3 minors. All trans to local hospitals. LAPD handle

— BurbankPD (@BurbankPD) December 28, 2013

All the injured were transported to hospitals. (Police also later amended the number of injured from seven to six.)

The park entrance in Glendale was closed off as the Los Angeles Police Department investigated the incident.

An employee at the park's equestrian center told CBS2/KCAL9 that the horses were not affiliated with their facility. She said a couple of loose horses ran up on a trail to a group of riders, whose horses got spooked and bucked them off.

Those injured were amateur riders who had acquired the horses from a rental company, the employee said.

Burbank PD told CBS2's Greg Mills that none of the injuries were life-threatening.

Mills spoke to some of the frightened riders including one woman who was sure she was going to die.

"I just couldn't believe it," said Katherine Novak. "I was on the ground. And it was terrifying. There was this stampede running right at us."

Another woman helped a little girl get out of the way.

"Her father ran past me, to his other child and he was saying 'That's my baby, that's my baby,'" said Mary Ann Hermanson.